18-month-old child dies after being struck by SUV in Eagle River

A young boy died after being struck and by a vehicle at a home in Eagle River.

According to the Anchorage Police Department spokesman MJ Thim, the 18-month-old was hit when his father moved a Ford Expedition from the driveway of a home on W. Parkview Terrace into the street.

“It happened very quickly,” Thim said.

The boy’s father didn’t realize what had happened until he got out of the vehicle, Thim said.

“It’s a heartbreaking situation,” he said.

Thim said both of the boy’s parents were at the home at the time of the accident. No foul play is suspected. Police were called to the scene at around 12:37 p.m. Sunday. In a statement, APD said the boy’s father got out of the vehicle and immediately called police, who pronounced the boy dead at the scene.

APD said no charges have been filed and the death is believed to be accidental; the department provided chaplains to offer support to the family. Thim said that’s common in traumatic cases such as Sunday’s.

“The family is understandably in a tremendous amount of grief right now,” he said.